Zee Entertainment Enterprises Ltd (ZEEL) said on November 28 that shareholders rejected a proposal to reappoint Director and Chief Executive Officer Punit Goenka as a Director at its annual general meeting.
The proposal for reappointment of Goenka as Director at Zee was defeated by a 50.4 percent- 49.5 percent vote, the company said in an exchange filing.
"Resolution No. 3 (Goenka's reappointment) failed to get requisite majority of votes as required under the provisions of the Companies Act, 2013 and SEBI (Listing Obligations and Disclosure Requirements) Regulations, 2015," ZEEL said.
Earlier this month, Moneycontrol reported that Goenka may face an uphill task to garner shareholder support at the voting in November 28 AGM. It cited analysts who noted that ZEEL’s institutional shareholders, including domestic mutual funds and foreign portfolio investors (FPIs), will play a critical role in determining Goenka’s continuity.
Moneycontrol also reported that proxy advisors InGovern and IiAS have both recommended that ZEEL shareholders should vote against the re-appointment of Goenka.
Goenka has previously faced significant investor backlash, particularly in 2021 when Invesco, then Zee's largest shareholder, called for his removal.
Notably, Goenka, whose family owns around 4 percent of ZEEL and retained the management control yet, has faced investor scrutiny on multiple fronts, including the failed $10-billion merger with Sony, which was billed to establish ZEEL as part of one of India’s largest media conglomerates.
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